Project description:To identify genes involved in responses to psychosocial stressor, we analysed RNAseq transcriptomic profiles in whole blood of 15 juvenile male vervet monkeys from the Caribbean island of St. Kitts at three experimental time points: day 0 (baseline), day 3 and day 5 of exposure to the stressor.
Project description:Characterization of transcriptomic variation is emerging as a critical tool for understanding how quantitative trait loci (QTL) contribute to complex phenotypes. Human transcriptomic studies are limited by factors such as the feasibility of invasive tissue collection or variable environmental exposures that can be readily overcome in non-human primate (NHP) models. We characterized transcriptomic variation across multiple tissues and developmental stages and between individuals in 59 vervet monkeys from the Vervet Research Colony extended pedigree. We conducted RNA sequencing across early (7, 90 days, and one year) and later (1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2, 2.5, 3, and 4+ years old) developmental time points in 6 individuals at each stage in five tissue types: two brain tissues from hippocampus and caudate, two endocrine tissues (pituitary and adrenal) and two peripheral tissues serving as a source of biomarkers (blood and fibroblasts)
Project description:In contrast to SIVagm, which does not cause disease in its natural simian host, HIV-1 expresses the accessory protein Vpu and encodes a Nef protein that fails to suppress T cell activation via down-modulation of CD3. Although both, Vpu and Nef have been implicated as pathogenicity determinants, their relevance for viral replication and disease progression in vivo has remained unclear. Here, we analyzed gene expression in African green monkeys infected with SIVagm chimeras differing in their expression of nef and/or vpu. We used microarrays to analyze global gene expression of African green monkeys in response to infection with SIVagm and found that the viral accessory nef and vpu genes co-determine the induction of distinct gene sets.
